Safeguarding a precious heirloom

(From left) Straits Times editor Warren Fernandez, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Standard Chartered Bank Singapore chief executive Neeraj Swaroop taking in the panels in the Business gallery at an exhibition to mark The Straits Times' 170th anniversary at the ArtScience Museum. The free exhibition was launched yesterday and will be open to the public from tomorrow to Oct 4. ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

PM Lee going through the Book Of 50, a collection of top entries from CapitaLand's crowdsourcing campaign for ideas on how to build a future Singapore, with four-year-old Ayra Lim Mohd Yusri and CapitaLand president and group chief executive officer Lim Ming Yan. ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

On the day before former president S R Nathan took over as executive chairman of The Straits Times in 1984, he was exhorted by founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew to take care of the paper, which the latter likened to a "bowl of china".

"You break it, I can piece it together, but it will never be the same. Try not to," said the late Mr Lee.

Yesterday, The Straits Times editor Warren Fernandez told the more than 200 guests who attended a celebration to mark the paper's 170th birthday that "the fine china is intact".

In fact, the newspaper's July 1 revamp across its print, online and mobile platforms has given it "a new gloss and a new glow", said Mr Fernandez, who took over as the paper's editor in 2012.

"The challenge for my colleagues and me, going forward, is to safeguard this precious piece of china," said Mr Fernandez, 49, in his speech at the launch of an exhibition on Singapore. "Not just as a museum piece, but to ensure that this family heirloom continues to be valued and treasured, relevant to the changing needs of ST readers, and the wider Singapore community."

MR PETER LIM, 76
FORMER ST EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

"Journalism is so dynamic and timeless... There may be different personalities and different circumstances but it's the same human conditions. It's the same old story but with exciting new developments."

"The paper is a very important platform not just for people to know what is happening in the country but also for citizens to voice out and give their opinions to improve their lives."

MR LEONG SEK CHOON, 54
WRITER AND LONG-TIME ST READER

"For a newspaper to survive so long to witness and record history is not a small thing. I hope ST continues to stay nimble and keep up with the times and how young readers consume the news, to stay relevant in all our lives."

"It brought Singapore's history alive with not only the old headlines but also multimedia and interactive displays. What caught my eye were the old advertisements of C.K. Tang, Robinsons which are true-blue heritage Singapore brands that have also evolved through the times."

The free exhibition, chronicling stories and photographs from ST's archives since its launch in 1845, will be open to the public from tomorrow to Oct 4. It was put together by a curatorial team comprising Straits Times Press general manager Susan Long, ST's picture editor Stephanie Yeow, chief photographer Joyce Fang, arts correspondent Huang Lijie, ArtScience Museum executive director Honor Harger and curator Julia Vasko.

CapitaLand is the presenting sponsor. Standard Chartered Bank is a gold sponsor and Best Denki is the equipment sponsor.

CapitaLand president and group chief executive Lim Ming Yan told ST the exhibition not only looks back at the past 170 years but also tries to paint "an interesting picture of the future".

The property developer crowdsourced for ideas on how to build the futuristic Singapore city earlier this year. These ideas will be on display at the exhibition as well.

Guests invited to last night's preview said the exhibition told the story of the paper and Singapore's growth over nearly two centuries.

Among them was freelance writer Leong Sek Choon, 54, who said visitors will get not only "a sense of how the nation came about and developed but also how the paper evolved".

Former ST editor-in-chief Peter Lim, who retired in 1990, said memories of his time in the newsroom are still fresh in his mind. "Journalism is so dynamic and timeless... There may be different personalities, different circumstances but it's the same human conditions. It's the same old story but with exciting new developments."

Right from the start, ST saw itself as being identified with the general interests of Singapore society. It saw Singapore through world wars, economic depression and race riots, said Mr Fernandez.

The paper has also fought off many competitors and "rode waves of change" in technology, from the introduction of the telegraph and the telephone to the Internet.

Relive history in ST e-book

Through 170 years of history, from wild tiger sightings in the 19th century to the Maria Hertogh riots in 1950, Singapore's oldest paper, The Straits Times, has seen them all.

Readers, too, can travel back in time and relive highlights from the last 170 years in The Straits Times' latest e-book, Living History: 170 Years Of The Straits Times.

Readers can view old copies of The Straits Times since the 19th century, read about Singapore during World War II and the evolution of the country's hawker food tradition.

The e-book can be downloaded free through The Straits Times Star E-books app.

"Through it all, The Straits Times survived, and thrived, and lived to tell the story," said Mr Fernandez.

DEALING WITH MEDIA DISRUPTION

Newspapers are consolidating, searching for a new model. Technology is disrupting the existing business models...

And The Straits Times is affected by these trends, but it is adapting and modernising itself for the new age. It's made its content more accessible in various forms of social media. It's adapted its operations to the changing patterns of news consumption... And I'm sure these considerations must have influenced your latest redesign of the newspaper, in print and online.

While you're adapting and finding new ways to produce a high-quality and commercially

viable newspaper, you must continue to be conscious of your important role in Singapore, and to maintain your hallmark of credible, balanced, objective reporting.

As the newspaper of record, you have standing in our society... Everybody reads The Straits Times, and surveys show that Singapore newspapers, including The Straits Times, enjoy high credibility and respect.

So you're not just an observer and a reporter of what happens, though that's your principal role. But you must also remember that what you report and how you report also inevitably influence people's opinions and the course of events in Singapore.

Yes, there will be a place for eye- catching scandals and human interest stories, even in the most high-brow of newspapers. But I hope you will continue to maintain a balance, take a long-term perspective of Singapore's interests, and report the news for Singaporeans through Singaporean eyes.

PM LEE, in a speech at the launch

"And it is this that gives us a certain quiet confidence that we will see through the current turbulence in the media industry."

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on July 16, 2015, with the headline 'Safeguarding a precious heirloom'. Print Edition | Subscribe

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